1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electrical card connectors, and particularly to electrical card connectors that are liable to receive complementary electrical cards inserted thereinto with a wrong orientation.
2. Description of the Related Art
With constant development of communications and computer technology, more and more electrical cards are being designed to meet various requirements. Electrical card connectors are used to connect these electrical cards with corresponding mainframes. Proper connection between an electrical card and a corresponding electrical card connector must be ensured. Conventionally, a bevel is formed on an electrical card, and the electrical card connector has a ramp portion matching the bevel. Such a card and card connector are disclosed in Japan Patent Application No. 11-66247. When the card is inserted into the connector, the bevel must mate with the ramp so that the card can electrically connect with the connector correctly. If the card is wrongly inserted into the connector, correct electrical connection is not achieved. Moreover, damage to contacts of the connector may occur, because a leading edge of the card wrongly presses the contacts.
To prevent damage to the contacts, a mechanism is required for preventing the leading edge of a wrongly inserted card from reaching the contacts. The present invention proposes such a mechanism to solve the problems of the related art.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an electrical card connector which is protected from being damaged by an electrical card that has been wrongly inserted into the connector.
According to the present invention, an electrical card connector includes a shield housing, a contact module, a switch module, an ejecting mechanism and a polarization mechanism. The housing covers the contact module. A pair of grooves is defined in opposite sides of the housing. A blocking tab is bent perpendicularly from an upper wall of the housing into one of the grooves. The ejecting mechanism is accommodated in that same groove, and includes a slide block which can slide along a direction of insertion of an electrical card. The slide block has a support arm and an ejecting arm. A ramp is formed between the support arm and the ejecting arm, for mating with a bevel of the card. An elastic arm is attached to the support arm. The elastic arm has an arcuate engaging portion oriented toward an inside of the connector. When the card is correctly inserted into the connector, the bevel mates with the ramp, and the engaging portion is received in a notch of the card. The card can thereby move together with the support arm toward the contact module. When the card is wrongly inserted into the connector with the bevel of the card oriented away from the ejecting mechanism, the engaging portion of the elastic arm is elastically pushed outwardly by a lateral edge of the card. The engaging portion presses against an edge of the blocking tab, and the slide block is thereby blocked from moving toward the contact module. A leading edge of the card is blocked by the ramp, thereby preventing the card from reaching contacts of the contact module.